American alternative rock group Hole, originally founded in 1989
by lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and songwriter Courtney Love and
lead guitarist and songwriter Eric Erlandson, first became known in
the underground circuit with the debut album “Pretty on the
Inside” (1991), which spawned the No. 1 U.K. hit single
“Teenage Whore.” Three years later, the band entered the
mainstream with the critically acclaimed platinum release “Life
Through This,” which was also a No. 13 hit in the U.K. The
album produced four Modern Rock Track hit singles, including “Doll
Parts” (#4) and “Miss World” (#13). “Life
Through This” has been widely regarded as Hole's best output
and one of the greatest albums of the 1990s. Hole gained even more
commercial victory with the Grammy nominated album “Celebrity
Skin” (1998), their first Top 10 hit on the Billboard 200 and
also their fastest album to achieve platinum certification. It
generated the Modern Rock Track No. 1 hit with the titled single,
which also brought Hole Grammy nominations for Best Rock Song and
Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, and an additional
Grammy nominated single titled “Malibu.”

After 13 years, Hole dissolved in 2002 and the two founding
members worked on their own separate projects. Love reformed the
group in 2009 with lead guitarist Micko Larkin. Since then, Hole went
on tour and released the studio album “Nobody's Daughter”
in April 2010. The debut single “Skinny Little Bitch”
made the top 20 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks, the group's
first hit on the chart since 1999's “Awful.”

LA Origin

Childhood and Family:

Formerly playing for the early versions of Faith No More and Babes
in Toyland, among other bands, Courtney Love (born on July 9, 1964,
in San Francisco, California) formed her own band and placed an
advertisement in the punk rock fanzine “Flipside” for
fellow aspiring musicians to collaborate with her. Shortly
thereafter, she got an answer from guitarist and songwriter Eric
Erlandson (born on January 9, 1963, in Los Angeles, California) and
they officially founded Hole in August 1989 in Los Angeles. Love and
Erlandson would become the only two constant members before the group
disbanded in 2002.

In 2009, Love reformed Hole by recruiting ex-Larrikin Love
guitarist Micko Larkin (born on October 13, 1986 in Hammersmith,
London) as the replacement for Erlandson. Bassist Shawn Dailey and
drummer Stu Fisher later joined the group.

Nobody's Daughter

Career:

Hole went to their first rehearsal in Fortress Studios in
Hollywood with original bassist Lisa Roberts, who joined Love and
Erlandson shortly after the band was founded in 1989. The group then
recruited drummer Caroline Rue and a third guitarist, Mike
Geisbrecht. Following three months of rehearsal, Hole made their
first professional performance at a small club in Los Angeles in
September 1989. They went on to play another three shows later that
same year. Geisbrecht left the group in 1989 and was replaced by
Errol Stewart. Stewart, however, left Hole within a few weeks. Before
long, Roberts followed in the footsteps of Stewart and left in early
1990.

After recruiting bassist Jill Emery in 1991, Hole toured often
while preparing their studio material. The band launched their first
single, “Retard Girl,” in April 1990. The sophomore
single “Dicknail” was released in March 1991 on Sub Pop
label. Both singles were co-written by Love and Erlandson. The
group's first full length album, “Pretty on the Inside,”
followed on September 17, 1991. It was produced by Kim Gordon of
Sonic Youth and Gumball guitarist and vocalist Don Fleming and became
the group only release on Caroline Records. At the time of its
release, the album earned positive reviews and was named Album of the
Year by “Village Voice” magazine. “Pretty on the
Inside” was an underground hit, especially in the U.K., where
it peaked at No. 59. The album yielded one single with the song
“Teenage Whore,” which entered the U.K. Indie Chart at
No. 1. No promo video was made for the single, but the group did
create a music video for the third track “Garbage Man,”
even tough the song was not released as a single. In support of the
album, Hole toured extensively throughout North America and Europe in
1991. Some of the musicians who performed with the group during the
tour were Seattle grunge band Mudhoney, Daisy Chainsaw, Therapy, and
The Smashing Pumpkins. After the tour was completed, Caroline Rue and
Jill Emery quit the group in 1992.

The album's success, coupled with the highly reported relationship
between Love and her husband Curt Cobain of the band Nirvana,
eventually landed Hole a record contract with major label Geffen
Records. Hole recorded the second studio album and their first major
label record “Life Through This” with bassist Kristen
Pfaff, who stayed with the group from 1993 until her death in June
1994 of an apparent heroin overdose, and drummer Patty Schemel. Prior
to the album's release, the group released the fourth single
“Beautiful Song,” which is about Cobain's love of wearing
dresses, in April 1993 on the European label City Slang. Co-written
by Love, Erlandson and Schemel, the song peaked at No. 54 on the U.K.
Singles chart.

“Life Through This” was released on April 12, 1994,
just four days after Cobain was found dead in the couple's home. The
album won strong critical acclaim and was also a commercial success.
It debuted at No. 52 on the Billboard 200 and rose to No. 13 in the
U.K. and Australia. The album went gold in December that year and
went on to achieve platinum status in June the following year. It has
sold two million units worldwide.

Released in April 1994, the lead single “Miss World,”
co-written by Love and Erlandson, rose to No. 13 on the Billboard
Modern Rock Tracks chart and No. 64 in the U.K. A music video was
made to promote the single, with Sophie Muller directing. The second
single, “Doll Parts” (1994), which was written by Love,
went to No. 4 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, No. 58 on
the Billboard Hot 100 and made the Top 20 in the U.K. (#16). The song
earned a 1995 MTV Music Video nomination for Best Alternative Video.
The album produced two more Billboard Modern Rock Tracks hits with
“Violet” (#29) and “Softer, Softest” (#32),
with “Violet” also hitting the U.K. Singles chart at No.
17.

Hole began their first tour as headliners after the release of
“Live Through This” on September 1, 1994, at the Phoenix
Theatre in Toronto, and dedicated it to their late bassist Kristen
Pfaff. The group recruited Melissa Auf der Maur as Pfaff's
replacement and toured extensively throughout 1994 and 1995.

Hole launched an EP titled “Ask for It” on September
8, 1995. It charted at No. 172 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold
about 160,000 copies. They then covered Fleetwood Mac's single “Gold
Dust Woman” and released it as their ninth single in 1996. The
song was also featured on the soundtrack of the motion picture “The
Crow: City of Angels” (1996), a sequel to the 1994 cult film
“The Crow.” Hole's version of the song went to No. 31 on
Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks. On August 26, 1997, the band released
a second EP called “The First Season,” featuring the full
recording of the band's first ever studio session in March 1990.
Later that same year, on October 28, 1997, the band released a
compilation album titled “My Body, the Hand Grenade” on
City Slang. Drummer Patty Schemel left the group in 1997.

Hole eventually released the third studio album, “Celebrity
Skin,” on September 8, 1998 Produced by Michael Beinhorn and
Erlandson, the album garnered primarily positive reviews and was
another commercial success for the group. It entered the Billboard
200 at No. 9 and became the group's first record to make the top 10.
It went platinum on December 21, 1998. The album also charted in the
U.K. at No. 11 and in Canada and New Zealand at No. 3 and 15,
respectively. It was nominated for a 1999 Grammy for Best Rock Album.

The debut titled single “Celebrity Skin,” which was
co-written by Love, Erlandson and Billy Corgan of The Smashing
Pumpkins, was released on September 1, 1998, and went on to be the
most commercially successful single for the group. It rose to No. 1
on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and No.4 on Billboard's
Mainstream Rock Tracks and became their first single since “Doll
Parts” to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 (#85). “Celebrity
Skin” was nominated for Grammys in the categories of Best Rock
Song and Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group.

The second single “Malibu,” released in November 1998,
rose to No. 3 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks, No. 16 on the
Mainstream Rock Tracks and No. 81 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also
went to No. 22 in the U.K. and No. 38 on the RIANZ Top 40 in New
Zealand. It was nominated for a 2000 Grammy for Best Rock Vocal
Performance by a Duo or Group. The music video for “Malibu,”
which was directed by Paul Hunter, received a 1999 MTV Video Music
nomination for Best Cinematography in a Video. The third single from
“Celebrity Skin,” “Awful” (1999), peaked at
No. 13 on the U.S. Modern Rock Tracks and No. 42 in the U.K.

After the release of the album, Hole hired Samantha Maloney as
their touring drummer in 1998 and she would remain with the group
until 2000. They toured extensively in 1999 to promote the album and
performed at various festivals. A few months after the group had
their show at Vancouver's Thunderbird Stadium in July 1999, bassist
Melissa Auf der Maur left the group and then became a touring bassist
for the Smashing Pumpkins.

In March 2000, the remaining members Love and Erlandson released
the single “Be a Man,” another song co-written and
including bass work by Corgan, for the soundtrack of the Oliver Stone
film “Any Given Sunday” (1999). It would become the
group's last single before they broke up.

After Hole disbanded in 2002, Love and Erlandson went on to work
separately. Love released her solo album in 2004 called “America's
Sweetheart,” while Erlandson continued on as a session musician
and producer. He also formed the group PRIICCEE with Vincent Gallo.

In June 2009, Love proclaimed Hole would be reunited with
guitarist Micko Larkin, formerly of Larrikin Love, replacing Eric
Erlandson on lead guitar. Erlandson and former bassist Melissa Auf
der Maur, however, confirmed during the following months that there
was to be no reunion. Despite the denial, Hole's reunion proceeded
and Love later recruited Shawn Dailey and English musician Stu Fisher
as Hole's drummer and bassist, respectively.

The fourth studio album, “Nobody's Daughter,” was
released on April 23, 2010. The lead single “Skinny Little
Bitch,” co-written by Love and Larkin, rose to No. 19 on the
Billboard Modern Rock Tracks and No. 29 on the Billboard Mainstream
Rock Tracks. It was followed by the digital download singles “Pacific
Coast Highway,” co-written by Love and Corgan, and “Letter
To God” in 2010.